Today we’d like to introduce you to Blake Armstrong.
Blake, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My name is Blake and I’m a Los Angeles based artist. I currently design for film, TV, music and just about anything in-between. Heavy Metal fans might have seen my work with In Flames, Slayer, Starset, Carnifex and more. I’ve worked on a multitude of Film and Television projects like Ready Player One, Ford V Ferrari and Stranger Things 3. The latter just won two Clio awards for the campaign.
I grew up in a small, rural, Southern Illinois town called Metropolis. I was always interested in art and film. My love of film led me to art — I would draw, build props and make up stories all through my youth. I made little silly movies on our hi-8 camera. My parents encouraged and nurtured my creativity by getting me private painting lessons, putting me in plays and humoring my weak attempts to play guitar. If they saw me invest, they tried to help me along. I’ll forever be grateful that they supported the spark.
Once in high school, I was truly blessed to have incredible mentors that not only supported my artistic interests but pushed me to take them as far as I could. Craig Rhodes, my art teacher opened my eyes to find my artistic voice and own it. Brian Green, my history teacher/Karate instructor taught me to be fearless and to jump on opportunities. I would do portraits for my teachers and earn extra credit which was one of the more valuable things I learned in my teens – creating art people wanted to buy me a lot of goodwill and good grades. It also made me realize I had a knack for it and boosted my confidence.
As soon as I graduated I seized on an opportunity to come out to LA through a family friend named Eric Streit. He was working as a producer and let me crash on his couch while I tried to land a job somewhere in the industry. Through some clever resume doctoring and begging, I was able to land several jobs in television post-production. This allowed me to side-step college completely as I was already working and earning a good living in my late teens/the early twenties. I worked my way up for nearly ten years eventually settling into a post-supervisor position on several series; all the while working on side projects and doing artwork just for fun.
The major turning point happened in 2012. I decided to attend a meet-and-greet with my favorite band, In Flames near my office at the time. I had the bright idea to make some fan art for them because they’d been such a huge inspiration for me. I made the art, framed it and presented it to them. One of their management team, a great guy and now dear friend named Andreas Werling, saw the piece and gave me his card, asking if I’d like to do more art for them. At the time I thought he was just being nice but sure enough, he reached out about a week later. He essentially asked what I would like to do for the band.
I made a deal to create a comic book based on their music and lyrics. My writing partner, Scott Bramble, and I created the graphic novel called “the Jester’s Curse” which went over really well with the band and their fans. This led to me quitting television all together to focus solely on artwork. The experience was so inspiring I couldn’t go back to my desk job. I started creating my art and sure enough, some of it caught on and allowed me to live off my posters and print sales. And having had such a good creative relationship with the band and Andreas, I was asked to create the album art for their tenth record ‘Siren Charms’ and this was pretty much what broke my art career wide open. From that album I gained an international audience for my work and cemented a working relationship with In Flames that has lasted for nearly eight years, I’ve created the art for their last three records and even produced one of their music videos.
But to back up slightly, In the middle of the In Flames work, I found a specific love for making movie posters. I am obsessed with guys like Drew Struzan and John Alvin, so I emulated a lot of their work on my own (borrow from the best right?). This led to me making posters for some indie films and movies my friends had produced along the way. From that, my work was seen by a creative agency called BLT communications. They are one of the top dogs when it comes to movie and television Key art. I was asked to come on board as an art director and I’ve been there ever since. I get to work on some of the biggest movies for the biggest studios and work with literal legends in the industry that I love so much. It all came back around to movies and artwork. Right, where it started.
If there is anything to be gleaned from my experience, I would encourage everyone to unabashedly follow what you love and what you are good at. Being positive and outspoken about that love could land you in places you only dreamed about. It did for me.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
My struggles have always been internal. Things like always trying to stay disciplined, saying yes to projects that seem over your skill level and always giving 120% even when you’re exhausted. And also finding time to recharge, spend time with loved ones and stay creatively sharp. It’s a hard balance! But its made easier when you truly love what you do.
Please tell us about your business.
My business and artwork are almost entirely focused around music, film and television. There are occasions where I have stepped outside and helped with storyboarding and logo design, but my heart has always been in the designing of movie posters and albums. I’m a pop-culture nut through and through. So not a lot of landscapes or typical fine artwork.
Initially, I made my artistic splash because my work was very referential to illustrated poster work from the 80’s. I’d created some fan posters for favorites like ‘The Burbs’ and ‘Back to the Future’ that got some attention on social media. These days, you have guys like Kyle Lambert, Paul Shipper and others who have nailed that style and vibe. But when I started focusing on art there wasn’t a ton of us doing that kind of work. I think that helped get me noticed. It’s much more prevalent now which is exciting. I think the illustrated poster is overall the superior way to create artwork for films and albums. I’m glad that love is resurfacing.
As far as what sets me apart it’s hard to say. I become very invested in the projects I undertake. I always go above and beyond. For instance, with the latest In Flames record, I worked on ‘I, The Mask’ not only did I create the illustrations and design of the record and its many iterations (these days you have CD booklets, and vinyls and digipaks, etc.) but I wrote a story that you could follow throughout the artwork. And that story then translated to music videos and an upcoming comic book. I always try to think big picture — how we can get the most out of a concept. And in an industry where any photoshop jockey can put a character on white and get it sold, I always try to make something special that you’d want to hang on your wall.
I take enormous pride in all of my work but this year was really special — I was able to be a part of the Clio Award winning work on Stranger Things three that featured my character posters and was featured in the Masterpieces 2019 issue where my album art for In Flames was included in the 100 best album covers of 2019. I’m incredibly honored that people like what I do.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
As far as future plans I want to keep pressing forward and continue to grow in every aspect of my profession in both creative and business. And in doing so, hopefully, inspire and mentor others to do the same. I was so fortunate to have truly amazing mentors in my life and I’d love to be able to give back in some substantial capacity.
Ideally, in the next few years, I’d love to have a sort of “poster boot camp” for young people that are interested in the profession. I think the prevailing notion these days is that art isn’t a stable or profitable profession for young people – which in turn leads to the demise of art programs and creative outlets. This is something I intend to combat as I continue forward.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.spaceboycomics.com
- Instagram: @spaceboycomics
- Other: hideousraginginferno.com
Image Credit:
Stranger Things 3 – Netflix and BLT Communications LLC.
Crimes of Grindlewald- Warner Bros. and BLT Communications LLC.
Ready Player One – Warner Bros. and BLT Communications LLC.
In Flames – Eleven Seven Music and Nuclear Blast Europe
Starset – Eleven Seven Music
Slayer – Nuclear Blast USA
Deadpool – BackStory Magazine
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